Identification card printers along with the aid of a computer are typically used to form identification cards by printing an image on a card substrate. The image generally includes a photograph and other information relating to the card holder, such as the card holder's name, employee number, and other information. Such identification cards are used for many purposes, such as driver's licenses, identification badges, etc. The image that is to be printed on the card by the identification card printer is generally formed by combining textual and graphical portions received from host applications running on the computer or from other input devices such as keyboards, scanners, and digital cameras. Data relating to the formatted image is then provided to the printer in the form of a print job. The printer processes the print job by printing the image onto a surface of the card.
Typical identification card printers include a print mechanism, a transport mechanism, and a card holder. For thermal-based identification card printers, the print mechanism can include a thermal print ribbon having primary color dye panels and a thermal printhead. The thermal printhead heats the ribbon and causes dye on the color panels to be released and sublimate into a surface of a card. Alternatively, the identification card printer can be an ink jet printer that includes an ink jet printhead having a supply of ink. The transport mechanism is generally configured to transport cards from the card holder to the print mechanism for printing.
Typical card holders of identification card printers are non-disposable components that are configured to support a stack of cards for feeding to the transport mechanism of the printer. These card holders do not enclose the stack of cards, but instead are open to allow for easy loading and unloading of cards. Unfortunately, these open card holders do not protect the cards from the environment. As a result, dust and other particles can contaminate surfaces of the cards which can adversely affect the print quality and cause other printing problems. Additionally, typical card holders of the prior art fail to support the cards in a flat plane, which can cause the cards to become warped resulting in misfeeds and poor printing.
There is a continuing need for improvements to identification card printers that provide increased reliability and performance. For example, it would be desirable to develop improved card holders that protect the cards enclosed therein from environmental contaminates while maintaining the cards in a substantially flat plane. Additionally, it would be desirable to provide improved card transport reliability by establishing a card transport plane, in which cards are fed from the card holder, that is independent of the card holder.